Watch These San Diego Elephants Form An 'Alert Circle' During Earthquake

SAN DIEGO, CA — Elephants in San Diego were captured on camera forming a protective circle when a powerful 5.2 magnitude earthquake rattled Southern California Monday morning.

The San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance shared a video from the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in Escondido that shows a herd of African elephants instinctively circle the younger elephants to protect them.

Elephants use their feet to sense vibrations in the ground. It's one of the ways they "hear" what's happening around them.

"This behavior is known as an 'alert circle' and is intended to protect the young — and the entire herd — from threats," explained San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance spokesperson Emily Senninger. "This video demonstrates the strong social family structure in elephant herds."

The herd consists of Ndlula, Umngani, Khosi and youngsters Zuli and Mkhaya, who were both born in 2018. The herd went back to normal about four minutes after the quake, Senninger said, though they did stay close to one another afterwards.

A 5.2 magnitude quake was recorded at 10:08 a.m. about 2.5 miles south of Julian, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The shaking was felt in Orange and Riverside counties and as far away as Los Angeles.

• Also see: Major Earthquake Shakes Southern California